Connecticut Aid Workers Assessing Post-Hurricane Needs

Courtesy of Americares / HANDOUT

A plane is loaded at Sikorsky Memorial Airport in Stratford to bring supplies to Haiti after Hurricane Matthew. The trip was organized by Hope for Haiti and Americares.

A plane is loaded at Sikorsky Memorial Airport in Stratford to bring supplies to Haiti after Hurricane Matthew. The trip was organized by Hope for Haiti and Americares. (Courtesy of Americares / HANDOUT)

Connecticut responders have begun assessing damage in Haiti and determining how to help after Hurricane Matthew swept through the Caribbeancountry, leaving a path of destruction.

Tiffany R. Kuehner, a New Canaan resident and chairwoman of Hope for Haiti, said a recon crew flew out of Sikorsky Memorial Airport in Stratford Thursday and made it to the nonprofit's operations in Les Cayes, on the western peninsula of the island, at about 9:30 p.m.

It was only then – two days after the storm hit – that the organization was able to confirm that all of its staff had survived. There were injuries, although none severe, and some lost homes, but the organization's workers haveshifted their attention to helping distribute supplies and beginning to rebuild.

"The biggest problem is all the crops have been destroyed," Kuehner, whose husband, Mike Stewart, was on the plane, said Friday. "Right now the biggest needs are food, clean water and shelter."

Kuehner said another difficulty has been physically transporting supplies into the hardest hit areas of the island. It took the four-person recon team nine hours to get from Port-au-Prince, the capital, to Les Cayes.

First responders from AmeriCares, a Stamford-based relief organization, were also on the flight. A spokeswoman said the plane was packed with 800 pounds of medicine and other supplies.

"We focus on making sure that people stay healthy throughout their recovery," said Donna Porstner, associate director of media relations for AmeriCares. "When people are evacuated they often leave their home very quickly and don't pack some of the essentials like medications. We want to make sure people with chronic conditions have access to those medications."

Friday afternoon the hurricane was barreling along the coast of Florida, expected to move as far north as South Carolina before curling out to sea and looping back toward the Caribbean. Some flights between Bradley International Airport and Florida were canceled, and Connecticut residents with part-time homes in Florida were checking in on their properties.

While much of the relief effort is focused on Haiti, where more than 400 have been killed, Bob Morande of the Hartford Jet Center at Brainard Airport said he'll be collecting supplies over the weekend to drive down to Florida.

"Every supermarket is out of the basic supplies – water, bread, all kind of stuff," Morande said. "All the gas stations are out of fuel. ... We can't fly any supplies so we're going to truck them down there."

Morande said he felt particularly compelled to help after seeing news reports of price gouging.

"People charging $3 for a bottle of water," he said.

Morande is looking for bottled water, nonperishable food, flashlights, batteries, paper plates and plastic utensils and even pet food. Donations will be accepted from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. at Hartford Jet Center on Saturday and Sunday.

Michelle Thompson, emergency response manager with AmeriCares, was riding out the storm Friday in Orlando, waiting for the hurricane to pass so she could respond to the affected areas and determine what was needed. She left Stamford for Florida on Wednesday.

"We're hoping to get out [Saturday] if the weather cooperates, but we have to make sure it's safe to do so," Thompson said.

Thompson — who was also part of the AmeriCares team that responded to Louisiana after devastating flooding there — said she didn't know how long she'd be in Florida.